Historic Lauer: 1st GGs
2012 Lauer Grosses Gewächs:
Saarfeilser & Schonfels
Clarity in the Saar - Grand Cru
Lauer's rise to stardom has been swift, on both sides of the Atlantic. Their acceptance in the VdP (the elite growers association in Germany) in January 2013 highlights their skyrocketing fame.
Today, we witness a historic moment for the estate: their first release of Grosses Gewächs.
It seemed like the week of Rieslingfeier was the perfect time to introduce two of Lauer's GGs from 2012.
As many of you know, Lauer is one of our favorites. The wines represent Riesling at its most nimble, precise and elegant.
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| Schonfels |
Nobody combines intensity and delicacy the way Lauer does. The wines are unrelentingly rigorous and firmly mineral yet walk on tiptoes with finesse, floral notes and intricate haunting structures. Of course, these are characteristics that make the Saar so special. In the dry and off-dry format, nobody hits this magical equation like Lauer does.
For Lauer fans, one of the most immediately interesting things for the Grosses Gewächs releases is seeing a dry version of Saarsfeisler, a wine that's usually in the off-dry format.Saarfeisler is a steep, warm, south-southeast facing vineyard. The soil here is slate with large alluvial rocks. This is a top site for Lauer and one of the great under-the-radar vineyards of the Saar.
Schonfels is one of the most dramatic vineyards in all of Germany, a steep site that meets a sheer rock face and then drops straight down into the Saar River. The vineyards here include a good portion of 100 year-old ungrafted vines. Unlike Saarfeilser, we've worked with three vintages of dry and dry-tasting wines from this site and they've all been stunning.
Our offers on Lauer's wines are some of our most popular. Lauer's strong following is no surprise to us. These are beautiful, tension-filled wines.
Needless to say, these are wines that we stock our cellars with every vintage. It's hard to resist the temptation to go long on the Saarsfeisler and Schonfels GGs. The 2012 vintage is gorgeously pure and it's hard to resist the first GGs Lauer has produced. We expect big things from these.
The only catch is that quantities are limited. Lauer just doesn't make a ton of wine and these two GGs are some of his most limited bottlings.
To order, reply to offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.
Joe Salamone
Wine Buyer
Crush Wine & Spirits